[Poseidon]

That picture brings back a lot of memories. My cousin and I use to ride ATCs all the time growing up.

Are you planning to use it for anything besides plow duty? Will it be strictly a work vehicle or recreation use too?

As for the auto transmission, they are almost all CVT now, with the exception of sport quads. They are 2 wheel drive tho. The CVTs work really well and there are clutch kits you can install that gear it down if you go with bigger / heavier tires or if you just want a snappier bottom end.

The two things I would look at are the differences in CVTs and the front differential / 4x4 system. They are not all created equal. Some have full lockers and others are more like a limited slip. Slow speed work like plowing will burn up the CVT belts on some more than others.

From the info you have provided so far, my recommendation would be a Yamaha Grizzly or Kodiak. Yamaha has the best 4x4 and CVT system on the market. The 4x4 has a push button system that will switch between 2wd, limited slip, and full locker. The CVT is the most durable. The belt is always in constant contact with the pulleys of the primary and secondary. All of the other manufactures allow the the belt to slip at idle to disengage the drive line.

The Grizzly is pretty agile on the trails as well. Give me a few mins and I'll post up some pictures.

 

[Poseidon]

I have more if you want to see them. Just let me know. I also have pictures of the CVT if you want a better idea of how they work. I also have some pics of my Can Am XMR1000 if you want to see a mud machine.

 

[Poseidon]

I would recommend the Grizzly. It is a great work and trail ATV. We take ours out to WV and ride the Hatfield McCoy trails. That is where the second picture I posted above was taken. WV allows them on the street. It is nice being able to come off the trail and ride into town for fuel and food.

 

[Poseidon]

I have several videos on my YouTube channel if you want to check them out.

Poseidons Lair

 

[Poseidon]

Damn! That Can Am is a monster!

The video of the Can Am was before I did the mods. I put on a Muzzy dual exhaust, tuner, primary and secondary clutches, a 4" lift, 32" silverback tires, and a few other mods. There are some good pictures of it in this thread.

http://www.thevog.net/threads/can-am-xmr-1000.87345/

 

[Poseidon]

I found this video about what you were saying. Pretty interesting.
I think I'm getting a little sticker shock though! Lol!
Yamaha Real World Tech - Ultramatic

You can get leftover bikes for $1500 under MSRP all day long if you shop around some. Sometimes you will find deals even better than that. I drove 5 hours up to Latrobe, PA to buy our Grizzlys. IIRC, the 700 was just over $7300 OTD and the 550 was right at $6500 OTD. I normally check Cycle Trader to see what new bikes are selling for nation wide, then I'll check a 150 - 200 mile radius to see if there are any deals close by. Sort the list from least to most expensive, and it doesn't take long to figure out who the volume dealers are that are willing to deal.

 

[Poseidon]

I used to be a big ATV fanatic and still kind of follow the scene. IMO the CanAm machines are the best rec/utility units out there. However they're also the most expensive. Honda makes a great utility machine with the Rancher/Foreman that you can still get manually shifted transmissions. The world is your oyster with ATVs today, like most things if you have the money to spend.

I loved my Can Am, but mostly due to the 1000cc Rotax it had. Can Am puts a stupid amount of electronics on their bikes and half of them are either completely unnecessary and / or to avoid lawsuits. For example, the DESS is their chipped key system. Dirt and water cause them to fail constantly and most of the time with little to no warning. There is nothing like being 50 or 100 miles from camp and your bike won't start because the computer can't read the key. Yeah, had that happen more than once. After the first time, I figured out a fix... started carrying a spare ignition switch. It can be changed trail side, but it is a PITA!!! Ended up being one of the reasons I sold the bike. Next, it had a computer controlled air ride that was set up more for ground clearance than anything. It had 6 levels with 6 being the most ground clearance, and also the stiffest ride. As soon as you exceed 30mph, the computer dumps air and drops it to level 3. The problem is that anything below level 4, the suspension bottoms out due to not enough preload. The only reason they could have to program it that way would have to be from the lawyers wanting the center of gravity lower to avoid roll overs. They eventually scrapped that suspension system after a couple of years due to all the complaints. There are other unnecessary electronics that have a high failure rate as well. I would never buy another one, at least not until they scrap more of the electronics, or figure out a way to make them less intrusive and not fail.

 

[Poseidon]

I used to be a big ATV fanatic and still kind of follow the scene. IMO the CanAm machines are the best rec/utility units out there. However they're also the most expensive. Honda makes a great utility machine with the Rancher/Foreman that you can still get manually shifted transmissions. The world is your oyster with ATVs today, like most things if you have the money to spend.

I thought Honda switched their manual transmissions over to a push button system a few years back. I could be wrong. Haven't looked into them in a while.

 

[Poseidon]

I found a few more pictures. These were all in WV at the Hatfield McCoy Trails. It was a group ride / camping trip.

 

[Poseidon]

 

[Poseidon]

These were taken at Busco Beach in NC.

 

[Poseidon]

Thanks!
I'm already looking at things to upgrade...air box mod, fuel tuner, exhaust tip, clutch weights swap.
OH Crap!

If you are going to do clutch weights, change the primary clutch. JBS Performance is who I would recommend. I have his primary sheave, secondary spring and weight kit on both of our Grizzlys. Owner is a super nice guy that really knows his stuff when it comes to CVTs. He is happy to help with any questions you have both about the product and installation.

Home - JBS Performance

Don't forget to dress it up a little too. This is the Shifter knob I put on mine. Got it on eBay.